Grip plates for a revolver handle



Aug. 20, 1968 E. M. MIKUS GRIP PLATES FOR A REVOLVER HANDLE Filed March 5, 1967 INVENTOR. v M. Mmus E DWARD ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,397,475 GRIP PLATES FOR A REVOLVER HANDLE Edward M. Mikus, 17680 Dwyer St., Detroit, Mich; 48212 Filed Mar. 3, 1967, Ser. No. 620,356 4 Claims. (Cl. 4271) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Grip plates have been added to the handle of a revolver, with one plate being lengthened and having a supporting shoulder terminating short of the drum at an angle of approximately 45 with the barrel, so that the revolver can be carried on the wearers belt without a holster.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION (1) Field of the invention Revolvers are usually carried in holsters, exposed. This Is particularly the case 'with uniform police and members of the armed forces. However, in many situations it is not only desirable but is necessary or required for a number of legitimate reasons to carry -a revolver in a concealed manner. Plain-clothes detectives, policemen off duty, bank tellers, gasoline station attendants, owners of grocery stores and similar businesses in neighborhoods where holdups may be expected, are examples of such situations. Serious difliculties are confronted by such persons in carrying revolvers.

If a revolver in a holster is sought to be concealed under the coat, it can be easily noticed either by slight protruding of the lower end of the holster from under the lower edge of the coat of by bulging of the coat at the waist of the wearer, or both.

(2) Description of the problem of the prior art and attempt toward its solution Considerable efiorts have been exerted for many years by those skilled in the art seeking to solve the above problem. One group of the proposed solutions reflected in a number of issued patents was directed to providing a holster which would be as compact as possible in order to decrease to a minimum the resulting bulge of the coat, and/or to position the holster in such a place on the wearers body as to be least conspicuous, such as beneath the armpit. While the above constructions have solved some portions of the above problem, they introduced a number of new problems, such as annoying discomfort and interference of the holster with the free movements of the wearers arm, as well as with drawing the revolver in emergencies. Accordingly, such holster constructions received only limited application, and only in special situations at that.

The above solutions were limited in their effectiveness by the fact that the added bulk of the holster was not only somewhat reduced by their use but could not be completely or even appreciably eliminated. As a result, many persons who have to carry revolvers without exposing the same prefer not to use any holster and merely tuck the revolver under the belt in such a manner that the handle of the revolver protrudes above the belt and extends somewhat outwardly by crossing over the belt to rest thereon for support. In order to have such support of the revolver sufiicient and safe, it is important that the handle of the revolver maintains such position and does not slip off the belt, since otherwise it presents the danger of gradually slipped down and falling through the trousers on the floor. Under conditions of excitement, such as in a case of a holdup when the wearer of a revolver may be forced into a closet, ordered to climb under the table ice with his hand-s up, or lie down on the floor, falling out of the revolver so carried is almost inevitable. Falling of a loaded revolver on the floor presents considerable danger by itself, and occurring during a holdup may lead to serious consequences.

It has been also proposed, see for instance US. Patent No. 375,829, to reconstruct the revolver handle and the mechanisms housed therein to provide a movable leaf spring disposed on the inner surface of the handle where it is gripped with the users hand. The spring actuates with the use of special cams a rocking finger hinged on the revolver frame and operating in such a manner that in the unstressed condition of the spring the same moves the finger and locks the same to a special loop attached to the users belt. On the other hand, when the handle is squeezed in drawing the revolver, the spring is moved and operates the cam, and through it the rocking finger, thus unlocking it from the belt loop. The belt loops supporting the revolver do not steady the revolver in place but allow its swinging or dangling. It also requires provision of a locking stud at the end of the rocking finger in order to prevent revolver from losing its balance and falling on the floor. Such constructions proved to be entirely too complicated, requiring complete reconstruction of the revolver handle; by permitting the revolver to dangle way below the belt, it did nothing to conceal the revolver.

Provision of special loops on the belt and of the locking studs or teeth does not permit wearing such revolvers tucked behind the upper edge of the trousers, since the stud would have to pierce the trousers. In addition, such stud or tooth could catch on the clothing and interfere with quick drawing of the revolver and thus virtually defeat its own purpose. In addition, such construction necessitated either complete reconstruction of the revolver handle or making irreparable changes therein, such as drilling holes in the frame, providing space for moving of the long leaf spring as well as of its connected parts.

Some of the objects of the present invention are to provide a self-supporting revolver which can be carried without any special provision, such as a holster, a belt loop and the like, and yet stay in place inconspicuous and secure.

A further object of the invention is to provide an improved self-supporting revolver which may be made as original equipment or which can be produced modifying a conventional revolver by changing the hand plate thereof but without making any irreparable changes in the revolver construction.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In accordance with the invention, I form a rigid extension at the upper end of the grip plate extending for a short distance toward the drum of the revolver and spaced from the side of the revolver frame, whereby the revolver can be tucked in behind the trousers and worn under the coat, or even tucked in under the upper edge of the trunks under the shirt and thus supporting itself in a position close to wearers body and without any swinging or dangling. The extension may be formed by molding thereof integrally with the grip or handle plate or otherwise securing such extension thereto to form a unitary structure. Also, a sheet metal plate with such an extension may be placed under the handle plate and held in place with the plate holding screws.

Various additional objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description and appended claims, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification, wherein like reference characters designate corresponding parts in the several views.

3 BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURE 1 is an elevational view of a revolver embodying the present invention.

FIGURE 2 is an end view of the revolver looking from left to right on the revolver shown in FIG. 1.

FIGURE 3 is a perspective view showing the self-supporting revolver embodying the present invention carried tucked in behind the belt and worn under the wearers coat which is shown in phantom lines.

FIGURE 4 is an elevational view showing the portion of FIGURE 3 including the revolver on a larger scale.

FIGURE 5 is a perspective view showing a grip or handle plate separately.

FIGURE 6 is a perspective view of the plate of FIG- URE 5 looking at the inside surface thereof.

FIGURE 7 is an exploded view showing provision of an extension by inserting under the handle plate the sheet metal or similar thin plate.

FIGURE 8 is a fragmentary elevational view showing the extensionof a modified form.

FIGURE 9 is a sectional view taken in the direction of the arrows on the section plane 9-9 of FIG. 8.

It is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and arrangement of parts illustrated in the accompanying drawings, since the invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or carried out in various ways within the scope of the claims. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein is for the purpose of description and not of limitation. Particularly, although the present invention is illustrated and described with reference to a revolver, it shall be understood that the invention is applicable -with equal success to firearms of different designation, such as automatic pistols, and the like.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS In the drawing there is shown, by way of example, a self-supporting revolver embodying my invention. Referring specifically to FIGURES 1-6, the revolver illustrated therein comprises a body frame 10 constructed in a suitable manner to accommodate a barrel 11, a drum 12, and a firing mechanism of the revolver including a hammer 13 and a trigger v14. The body frame 10 curves downwardly to form a frame for the handle which is supplemented or completed with the aid of two (2) handle or grip plates 20 and 21 held in place with the aid of a special holding bolt generally designated by the numeral 22 and passing through a hole 23 of the plate 20. The second threaded member completing the bolt and designated by the numeral 25 bears on the handle plate 21 to hold said plates 20 and 21 firmly in place. Locating lugs such as one shown at 26 prevent side movements of the plates.

The handle or grip plates 20 and 21 are made of any suitable material such as strong plastic, hard wood, bone, light metal die cast into desired shape, and the like. In using the plastic materials, the grip plates may be either cut out or formed from liquid plastic by the molding method.

The revolver construction so far described is conventional, and further description thereof is not believed to be necessary.

In accordance with the invention, my revolver is, in effect, self-supporting and is adapted to support itself on any substantially horizontally extending edge such as a belt, the top edge of the trousers or trunks, and the like. I attained such a result by providing at the top end of one of the handle plates, depending on whether the wearer of the revolver is a right-hand or a left-hand person. In the drawing and in the following description, the invention is illustrated and described with respect to the provision of such extension at the right-hand plate of the revolver for the use of a right-handed person. It will be understood, however, that construction embodying the present invention and intended for the use of a left-handed person will be similar to that illustrated and described herein in detail and does not need special illustrations or descriptions. While provision of such extensions on both plates is conceivable and may be advantageous under some conditions, I prefer to use only one extension that would be on the side of the revolver away from the wearers body as shown in FIG. 3 without having the second extension on the other side of the revolver.

The extension 30 is spaced from the body frame of the revolver, as is shown at 31 in FIG. 2, in order to provide clearance space for the entry of the supporting member between the body frame of the revolver and the extension 30 for supporting the revolver.

The upward extent of the extension 30, downward extent in the position of FIGURE 4, is made approximately one inch, although much shorter extensions may also be used with success. It should be understood that in use the weight of the revolver is supported by the shoulder 32, while the extension 30 itself serves to retain the revolver in place, retaining the supporting shoulder 32 on the supporting member rather than permitting it to slip off the same and go down particularly due to the movements of the wearer.

I prefer to make the plate 20 integral in construction and made by die casting operations from a suitable light alloy such as aluminium base alloys and lacquered or otherwise finished to impart to it a desired color and finish and thus make the revolver more pleasant to handle. Also, the plate 20 may be formed as a unitary structure by being molded from a suitable strong plastic, in which case the color and the finish may be imparted to the plastic material and the outer surface thereof in a manner well known in the art. Ribbing or embossing the outer surfaces of the plate for improving security of the hold may also be provided. However, such ribbing need not be carried to the outer surface of the extension which should be left smooth.

For use, the revolver is simply tucked in in a place where it can support itself such as behind the belt or trousers under a coat as shown in FIG. 3 wherein the coat is shown in phantom lines. A right-hand person would naturally tuck in the revolver on his left side with the handle pointing toward his right to ensure easy and quick draw with the right hand. A left-handed person would tuck in the revolver on his right side with the handle pointing toward his left. -In a case where a person is not wearing a coat, he may tuck the revolver in under his shirt under the trunks and may leave one shirt button immediately above the belt unbottoned. This generally, would not give and indication of intended drawing of the revolver.

An important advantage of the present invention is the fact that my invention can be embodied in a revolver either by making it originally as described above or by substituting a grip plate of the construction disclosed above in place of a conventional grip plate. By such a construction, exceedingly simple transformation of a conventional revolver into a self-supporting revolver embodying my invention is attainable.

FIGURE 7 shows a modified construction in which the extension 40 corresponding to the extension 30 of the construction of FIGS. 1-6 is formed as a part of a thin sheet metal plate generally designated by the numeral 41. The plate 41 has a body section 42 generally co-extensive with the conventional grip plate 43 and provided with an aperture 44 for the passage of the locating lug 45. At its top the plate 42 is bent to provide a shoulder 46 and the extension 40. In order to strengthen the extension 40, a reinforcing rib 47 may be provided. With such a construction, the revolver owner needs to procure only the plate 41. For use, the conventional plate 43 is first taken off the revolver handle, the plate 41 is put in its place whereupon the plate 43 is put over the plate 41 and tightened with the holding bolt.

FIGURES 8 and 9 show an extension having additional improvements. As shown in FIGURE 8, with the extension 50 illustrated in that figure, the revolver supporting shoulder 51 is made straight rather than curved. While the curved shoulder permits the revolver to adjust itself better to other positions, in cases where it is desirable to steady the revolver and to impart to it a tendency to remain in one position, the straight shoulder such as 51 may be preferred.

As shown in FIGURE 9, the tip of the extension shown therein is made beveled from both of its sides such as indicated in 52 and 53 in order to facilitate insertion of the extension into such places as inside pocket of the trousers and the like. In addition, there is provided therein a fillet such as 54 in order to prevent formation of internal stresses in the plate, particularly those made from such materials as die cast alloys and molded plastics, which stresses may result in breaking olf of extensions.

By virtue of the above-disclosed constructions, the objects of the present invention and numerous additional advantages are attained.

I claim:

1. In a revolver having a body frame, a barrel, and a drum, two grip plates each having a lower and an upper end and detachably secured to the body frame at the sides thereof, respectively, to form a handle, an extension rigidly connected to one of said grip plates to form at the upper end thereof an extension extending in the same direction as the said upper end in the form of a rigid member protruding from said body frame at approximately a angle to the barrel and terminating at a substantial distance before reaching said drum and providing a supporting shoulder thereat adapted to rest on a supporting member to support the revolver, with said extension adapted to hook over said supporting member and to retain the revolver in place.

2. The construction defined in claim 1, with said extension being integral With said grip plate.

3. The revolver construction defined in claim 1 with said plate and said extension being molded as a unitary integral structure from a plastic material.

4. The revolver construction defined in claim 1 with said extension being beveled at its ends from both sides.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,962,775 6/1934 Jones 42-71 2,320,450 6/ 1943 Valenzuela.

3,156,059 11/1964 Crain 42-71 3,226,870 1/ 1966 Labbie et a1. 42-71 3,327,421 6/ 1967 Finkelstein 42-71 BENJAMIN A. BORCHELT, Primary Examiner. 

